Language is the medium through which communication is both transmitted and received. To better understand and convey meaning, it is essential to analyse the philosophical underpinning of the conceptualization of the word. The factors of linguistic knowledge however are somewhat uncertain and eccentric. The language provides our human lifestyle with a unique combination of ways to communicate meaning and understanding in today's society. Language as a communication process dates back to Egyptian hieroglyphics and Greek mythology because it is through their heritage of language that their distinctive lifestyle and cultural identity are expressed to the citizens of the world today. It is the understanding conveyed by language that has the possibility of the nursing field to direct, teach, coordinate, and plan patient care.
In the field of nursing, language plays a powerful role in taking care of and educating patients.
In today's confrontational society, a good channel of communication between patients and nurses is essential. The significance of a standardized language is far-reaching and is not limited to the fact that it will benefit others. Several questions are arising from the adoption of a standardized language for nurses and its use in professional communication. Language should promote communication between health care providers and facilitate intervention in health facilities and environments. The language should also explain the results of nursing using a computer-ready coding system so that data analysis can be carried out at a later stage.
There is a lot to be done in developing a single standardized nursing language, but several works have been done in this regard. The International Classification for Nursing Practices (ICNP) (ICN, 2006) is an attempt by the International Council of Nurses (ICN) to establish a single language for nurses. ICPN is a terminology that maps different vocabulary, local terms, and classes.
Other languages developed for nurses include the Nursing Outcome Classification (NOC) and the Nursing Intervention Classification (NIC). They are linked to other notable nursing languages such as the Omaha system, the NANDA nursing diagnosis, and the Oasis of Health Care. NIC has also been translated into nine different foreign languages, and NOC has been translated into seven foreign languages.
The main aim of having a common vocabulary is to make communication between nurses and other professionals easier. Other benefits associated with the nursing language include greater visibility of nursing arbitration, good patient care, better assessment of the outcomes of nursing care, an increase in health care standards, and an assessment of the competency of nurses. Communication plays an important role when it comes to taking care of individual patients. At times when patients are required to be transferred to another hospital, unit, or facility, the language is of great concern as the documents are to be checked by the nurses.
Nurses employed in the clinical areas of hospitals are involved in a variety of media in the effort to improve communication systems for team members. Major urban hospitals are supposed to use a computerized collection of data on the patient's bedside through palm top technology to record specific individual medical information. Other institutions in a rather sophisticated environment accept recording devices that incorporate computerized or written progress notation to inform and update the nursing team. This epitome in a ward, unit, or hospital provides nurses with a known communication language.
Standardized nursing languages are verified by the American Nurses Association (ANA) which manages the Nursing Data and Information Set Evaluation Center (NIDSEC). The ANA evaluates the language in terms of its phraseology and confidentiality.
Communication for the medical profession is a challenge as there are different requirements for specific situations. Nurses acknowledge that language helps facilitate clear agreement and hence significance. Elitist language, when communicating with other health professionals, does exist within specialized units, although it is difficult to determine where the commonality of the language ends and an elite language begins. Language has the power and authority to educate and communicate with patients while proving difficult in the context of international global nursing requirements. We can simply say that if the goal is to improve patient care, it is important to adopt a standardized nursing language.
